All Hail Food!
by Indyctator
Summary: Random drabbles about Gioia, the Varia and the Vongola's 10th Generation! (side stories of My Little Sister and Light up the Darkness)
1. The Zombie Marathon

_(taking place years later)_

**The Zombie Marathon**

Xanxus heard strange gurgling noises coming from the room and decided to enter out of curiosity. He found Gioia comfortably nested in the couch, watching the TV with a strange mixture of disgust and amusement on her face.

"What's up?" asked Gioia, her eyes not even leaving the screen.

"What are you watching, brat?"

"The Walking Dead" she mumbled. "It's some American show with zombies."

Surprised by how intently she was watching the screen, Xanxus approached the couch and took a look. Now he understood her mixed expression. A zombie was currently munching the face of an unfortunate man. The same expression of revulsion and amusement slowly appeared on Xanxus' face. The gore images mixed with the revolting noises made quite an effect.

"This shit looks interesting" Xanxus sat in his usual armchair. "Fill me in, mini scum. What's happening?"

Gioia took the remote and paused the video. She turned to Xanxus with sparkling eyes and summed up the plot of the Walking Dead with great enthusiasm.

"Okay" he grunted after listening carefully to her. "I got the picture. Resume the video, brat."

Gioia nodded with an eager smile.

* * *

Squalo scowled as his stomach rumbled. He had just finished filling some annoying official papers and couldn't wait to have dinner. He left his office and headed for the kitchen. The mansion was particularly silent and Squalo realized how he had been left alone all day. Neither his shitty boss nor his bratty sister has bothered him. And that was quite an achievement. Musing on what those two could have been doing all day, Squalo didn't see a figure running toward him and collided with Gioia at full speed.

"Voiiiii! Watch where you're fucking going!" roared Squalo.

"Sorry, Nii-chan!" Gioia hastily said, out of breath.

The Varia captain looked down at her and raised an eyebrow in admiration. Gioia was carrying a plate of scorching steaks, a bottle of wine and a bowl filled with French fries. Despite the brutal collision, she had managed to hold to them all without breaking or spilling anything.

"Nice reflexes" commented Squalo.

"It's _food_" Gioia stared at him with wide eyes. "It'd be a sin to waste food!"

"Yeah, right… if only you could use those reflexes to get better at fighting" he sighed.

"_Yeah, right_" she mimicked, slightly annoyed. "Anyway, I left food for all of you in the kitchen. Just help yourselves, okay?"

Without adding another word, she turned and sprinted away.

"What's the hurry?!" yelled Squalo.

"Xanxus is hungry!" she shouted back without stopping.

Squalo shrugged and headed for the kitchen. He was too damn hungry to care about those idiots.

* * *

"Here you go!" Gioia handed out the plate of steaks along with the wine to Xanxus.

He took them and left his armchair to sit next to Gioia. The girl peered curiously at him.

"What?" he glared down at her, pouring himself some wine.

"I'm surprised you left your beloved armchair, that's all" she explained, still staring at him.

"Well, you get surprised for nothing" he scowled.

"Are you scared?" she grinned and immediately ducked to avoid Xanxus' blow.

"Shut up and play the damn episode!"

Gioia complied, the shadow of a mocking smile lingering on her lips. A couple of minutes later, they were both eating their dinner while a zombie was taking a human snack on TV. From the corner of his eye, Xanxus noticed the slight discomfort on Gioia's face and offered his plate of steaks to her with a smirk.

"Want some?"

"I'm fine with my French fries" she shot a disgusted look at the meat.

"Weak" Xanxus scoffed, chewing his steak with delight.

Gioia ignored him and reported her attention back on the screen.

* * *

Now that Squalo had eaten and showered, he felt truly bored so he set out to find Gioia. It took him half an hour to finally arrive in front of a room where faint shouts could be heard from. Squalo entered and found both Xanxus and Gioia sitting on the couch, watching TV. Gioia was wrapped in a fine blanket, sipping a cup of tea. Squalo couldn't help wondering why his boss was sitting next to her. He usually relished his comfortable armchair.

"What are you guys doing?"

Minutes later, after Gioia's summary of the show, Squalo decided to stay with them and squeezed himself next to his sister, earning a fierce glare from Xanxus.

"Why did you sit there, trash? Your sister is almost on my lap now!"

"I could ask you the same!" retorted Squalo. "You usually sit in that damn armchair!"

Both of them glared at each other, on the verge of lashing out.

"If you two don't shut up" Gioia threatened "I'll just watch this by myself in my room."

The two men grunted and settled as comfortably as they could on the couch.

One episode later, they were all tensed as an especially stressful scene was taking place in the show. One of the kids had just disappeared and the main characters were trying hard to find her in the woods. Of course, zombies were wandering around, making the process highly dangerous and the chances to find the girl unharmed scarce.

"That girl is dumb" growled Squalo. "She should have stayed like Rick said. Now she's lost and they're all worried to death!"

"She panicked" muttered Gioia. "And she's only a kid."

"Still…"

Despite her concentration on the show, Gioia noticed Xanxus kept glancing down at her.

"What is it?"

"Nothing…" he grunted.

"Tell me" insisted Gioia. "I can see you looking at me."

"Mini scum" he said in a grave tone. "If we ever get attacked in a wood infested with zombies, STAY with us. Don't wander and get lost."

"I'm _nineteen_" retorted Gioia, indignant. "I'm not a kid. I can take care of myself!"

"No, no" Squalo shook his head. "Xanxus is right. You should stick with us."

"And you're not a kid. You're a freaking _baby_" added the Varia boss. "You'll always be."

"If you'd get lost, we'd freak out" nodded Squalo. "Just like they freak out. Try putting yourself in our shoes!"

"You're both being stupid. I can perfectly survive by myself."

"No, you can't" Xanxus blankly stated as he put one arm around her in a headlock. "You stay with us."

"That hurts!" whined Gioia, trying to escape from him. "There are no zombies _anyway_ so this conversation is pointless."

"But if it happens one day" Squalo glared down at her "you better remember that."

"We never know, mini scum" Xanxus nodded. "Things happen."

Gioia rolled her eyes and dropped the subject. With tremendous efforts, she managed to make herself comfortable with Xanxus' arm still around her neck.

"I'm not a baby" she mumbled in a barely audible voice.

Without a glance at her, Squalo patted her head.

* * *

The next morning, Lussuria happily strolled in the dining room. He was usually the first to get up so he was startled to see three persons were already sitting at the table.

"Good morning, you beautiful people!" he sang.

Xanxus, Squalo and Gioia looked up at him at the same time, making Lussuria recoil.

"Oh… I didn't know today's theme was zombies…"

Pale faced, dark shadows under their eyes and hunched over the table, the trio merely grunted as an answer.

**Note:**

_So here it is, the first one! And it's a totally random one ^^ I was watching the Walking Dead and felt like it'd be the kind of show the Varia could watch x) _

_I'll probably post another one later today or tomorrow, this time about Gioia's childhood! As some of you suggested, this is a good chance for me to make Gioia's bond with the Varia clearer :) I hope I won't disappoint you!_

_Lastly, if you ever have suggestions, feel free to share them here! If you'd like me to write about a certain situation, you know? Things like that. Just tell me and I'll see if I can come up with something :D_

_ALSO, any suggestion for the title? :D As you can see, I randomly chose one..._

_Thanks again for your support, it means a lot to me!_

_Take care, guys! :)_


	2. First Impression

_(this takes place at the party when Squalo first met Xanxus, after the 1st part of MLS chapter 6!)_

**First impression **

Squalo groaned when his phone rang for the third time. He reluctantly reached for it and checked the caller ID.

"I need to take that" he apologized.

"Go ahead" Xanxus replied. "I'll see you next week then."

Squalo nodded and watched Xanxus disappear in the crowd as he took the call.

"What is it, Tanaka?"

"I'm sorry to bother you, Squalo" answered the butler "but it's rather late and it's almost time for Gioia to go to bed."

"Sure" Squalo growled. "We'll come home now."

Squalo hung up and looked around him, squinting at the crowd to find his little sister. He had been so absorbed in the conversation with Xanxus that he had forgotten all about her. But he wasn't worried about her. Knowing Gioia, she would be wandering somewhere near the buffet. Thoughtful, he made his way through the gathering toward the buffet. A satisfied smile reached his lips as he thought once again that he had made the right choice by coming to this Vongola party. It had been the perfect chance to meet Xanxus, the Vongola boss' son. Squalo had immediately been drawn to the young heir's fierce aura and hadn't been disappointed when he had talked to him. Squalo truly believed he had found the man he'd been loyal to for the rest of his life.

At the buffet, he was surprised not to find his tiny sister near the sweet cakes. He glanced around and finally spotted her, sitting by herself at a table. He shook his head as he saw the mountain of pastries piled on her plate.

"Are you a monster?" he called out, making his way to her.

Gioia turned to him, her forehead wrinkled by a frown.

"I'm not!" she retorted, offended. "Try them and you'll see they're yummy!"

Squalo picked a pastry from the plate and took a seat in front of his sister. Gioia watched him closely as he tasted the pastry.

"Not bad" Squalo finally said with a shrug.

Gioia rolled her eyes, making Squalo smile.

"You're way too serious about food, brat" he chuckled.

She sulkily crossed her arms and turned her eyes to the crowd.

"He's your new friend?" she asked.

Squalo followed her gaze and saw Xanxus standing by himself at some distance from the crowd.

"What do you think?" asked Squalo, out of curiosity, as he stole another cake from her plate.

"He looks like he hasn't pooped in a week."

Squalo spat out his cake and looked at his sister with disbelief.

"What!?"

"Why is he so angry then?" she turned her attention back to her brother, disapprovingly frowning at the waste of food.

"I don't know. He must have his reasons. Don't like him?"

"I think he's more scary than Father" she mumbled with a shrug.

"Scari_er_, Gioia" Squalo automatically corrected.

"You're not afraid of him?"

"No" scoffed Squalo. "Why should I be?"

Gioia looked up at her brother with sheer admiration. Squalo couldn't suppress a smug expression from creeping on his face.

"Anyway, brat, we have to go!" Squalo said, getting up. "Or Tanaka will scold both of us."

Gioia jumped on her feet and cheerfully took Squalo's hand.

"What did you two talk about?" she scurried to keep pace with her brother.

"The future" Squalo smiled. "I'm gonna work for him, Gio."

The little girl stared thoughtfully at her older brother, wondering why it made him so happy.

* * *

Tanaka put the book away and gently tucked Gioia in her bed.

"Did you have fun at the party?" he asked.

"They had yummy cakes, ojiichan!" she said with sparkly eyes.

"I hope you didn't eat too many of them" the old man said with a stern look.

"No" she answered, grinning sheepishly.

Tanaka shook his head and smiled, amusement at the girl's love for food getting the better of him.

"Nii-chan found a job" she added.

"A job?"

"I think so" she tilted her head, thoughtful. "He made a new friend and said he was going to work for him."

"And does that new friend look nice?"

Tanaka watched her reflect on the question for a moment before she nodded with a big smile.

"I think they'll work well together!"

"Then all is good" said Tanaka, affectionately ruffling her hair before bidding her goodnight.

**Note:**

_Sorry for the delay! I had to show this to my beta before publishing it so it took more time than expected :) hope you enjoyed it! _

_**Thanks for all the follows and reviews! :D** I'm so happy you guys are interested in reading those drabbles!_

_**Guest**: Thank you for your review and your suggestion! I'll keep it in mind and see what I can do with it ehehehe that could be interesting! :D_

_I hope you guys are doing alright! Take care! ^^_


	3. Hearts Thief

_(takes place shortly after Bel joined the Varia)_

**Hearts Thief**

Bel hurtled down the stairs with an eager smile. By the time he had reached the main hall, Squalo and Gioia were there, taking off their jackets. Bel swiftly threw a knife at the little girl, not even bothering to stop in his run. The knife flew through the room at incredible speed and only Squalo's best reflexes to push his sister out of the way saved her from a painful encounter with the weapon.

"VOIIIII, Belphegor!" roared Squalo, glaring at the child. "What the fuck are you doing?!"

"Ushishishi, welcome home party" Bel snickered, choosing to stand at a respectable distance from the angry captain.

"Listen to me, you ungrateful brat" Squalo said as he pointed his sword at Bel "if I learn that you dare touch one hair of my little sister…"

Squalo paused, looking down at the prince.

"You'll hope you never joined the Varia" he finished with a cruel smile.

"Peasant, you're just being rude" Bel pouted.

"Just remember that" Squalo growled before turning to his sister. "You do whatever you want to do. I can't keep an eye on you right now; I've got stuff to do. You remember the rules?"

"Stay in the officers' quarters or in the kitchen" Gioia recited. "The rest of the mansion off limits."

"Good girl."

Squalo quickly patted her head then left the two children by themselves.

"Where were you all week, peasant?" Bel asked as he followed Gioia who had left the hall as soon as her brother had disappeared around a corner.

" I come here only on weekends. During the week, I have school and stay at home."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Belphegor" she glanced at him, shaking her head. "You only arrived last weekend. And I didn't even see you after you were dragged away by Mammon. How was I supposed to tell you?"

"You should have found a way, peasant. Now where are you taking me?"

"I'm taking you nowhere. You decided to follow me and I'm going to the kitchen."

"The kitchen?!" Bel stopped, apparently offended. "The kitchen is no place for a prince!"

"You're welcome to stay out then" she rolled her eyes as she entered her favourite room in the Varia mansion.

There were several kitchens in the mansion but this one had been specially arranged for her. Squalo had flatly refused she used the main kitchen because he wanted to keep her away from the Varia staff as much as possible. He had finally agreed to allow her this little kitchen so she could have fun while she was staying there for the weekend.

As she set out to gather the ingredients she needed, Bel at last decided to enter the unworthy room. He looked around, barely hiding his disgust, then turned his attention to the girl.

"What are you doing?"

"Homework!" she said with a big smile.

"Your teacher gave you that kind of homework? Peasants sure are strange" he mused.

"Not homework for _school_" she spat the word as if it was bitter. "Homework Cas gave me! He's teaching me how to cook and bake. And today I must bake some shortbread biscuits. You'll see, they'll be yummy!"

Bel stared at her, unimpressed. However he had nothing better do and he certainly didn't want to run into Mammon and get an extra lecture on how Varia members should behave. So he just shrugged and took a seat to observe her at work. Not even five minutes had passed when his eyes started drooping.

"Don't fall asleep now, Bel!" Gioia chuckled. "Or you won't get to taste the dough and that's the best part of baking!"

"You're talking nonsense, peasant" he mumbled before dozing off on the table.

* * *

Bel lazily opened his eyes and frowned at his surroundings, momentarily confused. With a yawn, he stretched and looked around, slowly remembering what he was doing in the kitchen. Then he noticed a plate with a couple of biscuits and accompanied by a note.

"I didn't want to wake you up. I went to give out my biscuits to the officers. Here's your share."

Dubious, he picked a biscuit and sniffed it.

"Doesn't she know that a taster's services are required before giving any food to a prince?" he sighed, nonetheless taking a bite.

"Well, fortunately for her, it's good" he said, gulping down the rest of the biscuit before taking another one. "Why are they heart-shaped though? So childish and girly…"

* * *

"Mu, why the heart shape?"

"That's the only mold I had" sighed Gioia, waiting for Mammon to take one of the biscuits she was handing out.

"Why are you giving me biscuits? Do you want something from me?"

"_Mammon!_" she whined, getting impatient. "I just made biscuits and wanted to share with everyone. Why are you so mean?"

"Maybe you poisoned them" insisted the suspicious Arcobaleno. "The heart shape seems particularly suspect. Maybe you're trying to get revenge from that time I used illusions on you!"

"_I'm not_! I swear on Nii-chan that I didn't poison them! Now take one!"

Mammon reluctantly grabbed a biscuit and drew it near his mouth. However he stopped, the biscuit only inches away from his lips.

"Really?!" Gioia said before she pushed Mammon's hand, forcing the biscuit into his mouth.

"Mu, what are you doing, idiot?!" coughed the baby, half choking.

"You deserved that!" she snapped before leaving the room, angry steps echoing behind her.

* * *

"Yes, come in!" Lussuria sang after he heard a knock.

The door opened and Gioia hesitated a bit before entering. She loved Lussuria but the atmosphere of his room made her slightly uncomfortable. The man had hanged strange pictures of what appeared to be corpses next to clippings from fashion magazines. Trying to ignore the pictures, Gioia entered and made her way to Lussuria who was beaming at her.

"Well hello, darling! I didn't know you had arrived yet!"

"I went straight to the kitchen" Gioia grinned. "And I made those. Here, have some!"

Lussuria clasped his hands around his face and seemed to melt on his chair.

"This is so adorable of you, my dear!" he said in a high pitched voice. "And those are hearts! How cute! Oh, sweetie, are you offering me your heart?"

Gioia giggled as he took a biscuit and tasted it.

"They're wonderful, honey! I'm so proud of you!"

"Thank you, Lussu-nee!" she said with a wide smile. "You can have another one if you want."

"Oh, you're so generous" Lussuria sighed, pretending to wipe a tear away. "I'll have a last one then."

After taking a biscuit, Lussuria gently pinched the little girl's cheek and watched her leave the room with an affectionate smile.

* * *

Xanxus heard a faint noise and looked up from the report he was reviewing. A tiny face had appeared at the edge of his desk and two grey eyes were now staring at him.

"What are you doing here, mini scum?" he growled.

A shy smile appeared on Gioia's face as she put a box of biscuits on the desk. Xanxus' lips twitched as he noticed the biscuits had a ridiculous heart shape.

"I hope you don't expect me to eat those stupid biscuits…"

Gioia's face fell, clearly disappointed.

"I made them" she mumbled.

"So what?"

"I want you to taste one."

"No fucking way" Xanxus scoffed. "They look so dumb. What's with the heart shape? That's so girly."

"I _am_ a girl" Gioia remarked.

"Whatever, trash."

"Please, Boss" she looked up at him with puppy eyes.

Xanxus glared at her, launching a fierce staring contest. He put on his most terrifying face and waited for the girl to look down. But Gioia kept staring at him with imploring eyes. A vein popped on Xanxus' forehead as he admitted defeat less than a minute later.

"_Fine_" he grunted and took a biscuit.

Gioia watched him closely as he munched it and smiled when Xanxus nodded.

"Edible" he said.

"Thank you, Boss!"

"Now go away, brat. I have to finish reading this."

Gioia nodded and was near the door when Levi appeared. He looked down and tutted at her. But she ignored his rude behaviour and handed out the box.

"I don't like you but you can have one" she said.

"Why would I want something from you?" Levi retorted, failing to hide his interest in the freshly baked biscuits.

"Boss said they were good" added Gioia.

Levi's eyes darted to Xanxus who impatiently shrugged.

"If Boss said it…" he took a biscuit and ignored Gioia's triumphant expression.

Gioia didn't wait to see if he enjoyed it and left the room. Moments later, a hand fell on her shoulder.

"Wait a minute."

Gioia turned and peered curiously at Xanxus.

"I'll have the box, mini scum" he simply declared while taking the box out of her hands.

"But Nii-chan didn't…"

"Too bad for him" Xanxus scoffed and he returned to his office with a satisfied smile.

* * *

Gioia knocked and entered her brother's office.

"Ah it's you" Squalo looked up at her while she took a seat in front of him. "I was waiting for you. Did you make those biscuits you told me about?"

Gioia shuffled uneasily on her chair.

"I made them… But Boss took the entire box" she confessed.

"What?!" Squalo's pen fell from his hands as he gaped at his sister.

"Sorry, Nii-chan."

"You mean that bastard took all the biscuits? And I don't even get one?!"

"Well, you don't get to try _those_ biscuits but here."

Gently smiling, she put on his desk a little plastic bag containing chocolate biscuits.

"I made lots of those other biscuits but these are only for you!"

Relieved, Squalo opened the bag and savoured the special biscuits. When he finally finished them, he stared fondly at his sister and ruffled her hair.

"Thanks, brat!"

"You're welcome" she grinned.

"But next time, don't let Xanxus steal my share…"

**Note:**

_My beta didn't check this one so sorry if there's any weird wording or grammar mistakes ^^" Also, they call him "Belphegor" because he just arrived and Idk, I felt they wouldn't be calling him Bel yet x)_

_I hope you enjoyed this! Thanks for the reviews and follows!_

_Have a nice day and take care, guys! :)_


	4. Be careful what you wish for!

**Be careful what you wish for**

_oO Two weeks before Halloween Oo_

After a quick knock on the door, Gioia strolled in Squalo's office with a bag of candies. The Varia captain absent-mindedly glanced at her. Gioia took a sit in front of his desk, opening and eating candy after candy.

"Look, Nii-chan. Dino bought me candies yesterday" she happily sang.

"Uh-huh."

"Do you want some?"

"No."

"You don't like candies?"

"I do but I don't want any right now."

"Do you know when you get to eat as many candies as you want?"

"No."

"_Nii-chan_!" she whined.

Squalo let out a long sigh before looking up at her.

"I don't know. Christmas?"

"No!" she squealed, offended. "It's _Halloween_!"

"Yeah, right" he mumbled before he started reviewing another report.

Visibly disappointed, Gioia left the office and her brother to his occupations.

* * *

_oO One week before Halloween Oo_

"Hurry up, Gioia darling! Even from here, I can see your dear brother is losing patience."

The little girl quickly pointed at the dress she wanted Lussuria to buy for her then patiently waited beside him at the cashier desk where tons of Halloween accessories had been displayed. Her eyes twinkling with envy, she stared at a witch's hat, wondering if it'd suit her.

"Don't you think this hat is nice, Lussu-nee?"

Lussuria followed her gaze and chuckled when he saw the hat.

"Sweetie" he took her hand and led her out of the shop "that's some really cheap hat. Lussu-nee could make you a much better one."

"You could?!" she gaped at him.

"Of course. But why would you want to look like a witch?"

Gioia pouted at the evident question. She sometimes wondered why the Varia officers were considered the deadliest assassins when they couldn't even figure out things like that.

"What took you so long?" Squalo growled as they followed him towards the exit.

"Your adorable sister had trouble choosing the dress she wanted" Lussuria smiled. "Unlike you, she has a bit of taste when it comes to fashion and she doesn't just take the first thing she puts her hand on."

Squalo shook his head, not even bothering to answer.

"What day is it today?" Gioia asked as they entered the car.

"October 25, Gioia" Squalo answered, starting the car. "You asked that about fifty times already."

"Oh yeah, silly me" she laughed. "So when you come pick me up next week Saturday, it'll be…?"

"October 31, sweetie" Lussuria said.

"Are you that dumb?" Squalo looked at her through the rear-view mirror. "You know a week is seven days, right?"

"Yes, yes, I know…" she sighed before adding in a whisper "you're the one who's dumb."

"What did you say?" shouted Squalo.

"Nothing."

* * *

_oO Three days before Halloween Oo_

A vein popped on Squalo's forehead as he lost patience with his sister.

"Tell me again. What's the point of your phone call?" he asked, mustering all his self-control not to yell at her.

"I told you! Dino and I watched that movie called Casper and it was really fun! It's about a cute ghost and they have this _Halloween_ party and it was awesome. You know, Halloween seems nice and…"

"You called me" Squalo interrupted "because that idiot and you watched some stupid movie about a dumb ghost…?"

"It's not stu…"

"I'm going to kill both of you on Saturday" he snapped before hanging up.

In a fit of anger, Squalo threw the poor phone across the room and watched it crash against the door. Seconds later, Xanxus and the other Varia officers entered the office. Surprised, they found the remains of the device on the floor and Squalo rubbing his temples in an attempt to calm down.

"What's wrong?" asked Lussuria as they all found a spot to sit in the captain's office.

"Is it only me or my little sister keeps talking about Halloween?"

They all frowned as they thinked about it.

"Well" started Lussuria "she did show me that witch's hat when we were shopping."

"She asked me what I did last year" said Bel "but she looked disappointed when I said I hadn't done anything because I wasn't allowed to go out. It seems you have to offer a choice to peasants and ask them whether they want 'tricks or treats'. Two years ago, I didn't know about the 'treats' part so I just tricked everyone and happened to kill some."

An evil grin had appeared on Bel's face as he remembered the sweet memories. Squalo shook his head. He still hadn't got used to this psycho brat.

"She asked me if I was a witch last week" said Mammon "and if I was hiding a wart under my hood…"

"Are you?" Bel chuckled.

"Mu, don't touch me, kid."

"Tch, your stupid sister, _as always_, insulted me" growled Levi. "She asked me if I was getting uglier or if I was preparing my Halloween costume."

They all scoffed at Levi's remark, even Xanxus who regretted he hadn't been there to witness the scene.

"She showered me with candies last week" the Varia boss finally said.

"That brat" Squalo shook his head. "She thinks I'll let her wander at night, knocking at strangers' doors?!"

"Maybe we could just do a Halloween party?" proposed Lussuria, his eyes already sparkling with excitement.

"I'm in, peasants! It's so boring with all of you old people!"

"Count me out" said Mammon. "I don't have time for this."

"Me neither" added Levi.

"I'll just eat the candies" finished Xanxus.

Annoyed, Squalo refrained from snapping at his boss and instead, turned to Lussuria and Bel.

"Let's organize something for her then."

"Ushishi, something spooky!"

* * *

_oO Halloween night Oo_

"What's going on?" Gioia asked as she reluctantly followed Bel who was leading her upstairs.

"We're going to the third-floor corridor, peasant" Bel explained, failing to hide an excited grin.

"I'm not allowed to wander in the mansion, Bel… Nii-chan will be angry if he finds out."

"You don't have to worry" he said. "Here we are! We have a surprise for you!"

Gioia's eyes widened as she saw a huge black curtain hanging from the ceiling and a lady in white, standing motionless near the curtain. Gioia stayed close to Bel, slightly worried about the lady's presence. She had never seen women in the Varia mansion before.

When they finally reached the stranger, she turned and glared down at them. After a second of shock, Gioia burst out laughing as she recognized her brother under the heavy makeup.

"Shut up, brat!" he snapped, his cheeks pink from embarrassment.

"Nii-chan, I can't believe you dressed up as the White Lady!" she managed to say between two hiccups.

"I did this for you, you ungrateful brat!"

"For me?"

Gioia looked at Squalo, dumbfounded, before turning to Bel who was grinning.

"We prepared a Halloween party for you" said Bel.

Clapping with delight, Gioia couldn't stop laughing then hugging her brother then laughing at him again. When Squalo finally reached his patience's limit, he slapped the back of her head and ignored her whining.

"Stop making fun of me" he said before smirking at her. "We rearranged this corridor for you. I present you the _corridor of horrors_!" he dramatically announced, opening the curtain and inviting her to enter with a slight bow.

Gioia peered at the darkness behind the curtain but couldn't make out anything. She raised an eyebrow at Squalo who smiled.

"Bel will go with you. We'll see if you're strong enough not to be afraid, brats."

"You're underestimating us" the two kids said together before entering the corridor with confident steps.

Spider webs, evil looking pumpkins and strange shadows welcomed the two children. Despite her bravado a few minutes earlier, Gioia was now feeling a bit uncomfortable. She glanced at Bel and flinched when she noticed the prince looked as if he was simply taking a walk.

"You're not afraid?" she asked, her shaky voice betraying her feelings.

"Ushishi, of course not."

Feeling her last drop of courage melting away, Gioia stopped, nervously looking around her. Surprised, Bel observed her for a moment before he offered his hand.

"Come on, peasant. We have to show them we can go through this without a problem."

Gioia was contemplating Bel's hand when she heard a faint laugh which sent a shiver down her spine. Whimpering, she grabbed his hand and Bel dragged her forward. A concert of strange noises was now surrounding them: hollow chuckles, whispering voices, faint lamentations, chains clicking, distant steps. Reassured by Bel's confidence, Gioia kept going although she was starting to regret talking about Halloween. She had expected the usual dressing up, wandering at night, knocking at doors and getting treats Halloween. Now she was just dreading the moment Squalo or someone else would try to scare her by touching or jumping at her.

"Bel" she whispered "do you know if any of them will try to… AAAAAH!"

Gioia screamed as something cold and sticky brushed her face. Her arms frantically flailed around as she tried to escape the invisible enemy.

"Shut up, peasant!" Bel tried to calm her down.

Rolling his eyes, he took out a knife, slashed the air and picked up something that had fallen on the ground.

"Look, it's just a sponge…"

Teary-eyed, Gioia stared at the innocent sponge that had almost given her a heart attack.

"You're really stupid" Bel scoffed.

"It was on my face!" she snapped.

"You're weaker than I thought."

"I want to get out of here, Bel" she pleaded.

"_You can't get out_" a voice chuckled, coming from behind.

Gioia jumped and turned to discover Squalo right behind her. She shrieked as she discovered the face of her brother distorted in a horrible grimace and covered with blood. The fact he was holding a torch under his chin only made it scarier for the poor girl. Without a moment to lose, she ran away, closely followed by a delighted Bel.

"Wait for me, peasant!"

When she was completely sure she had put enough distance between Squalo and her, Gioia finally stopped and waited for Bel to catch up.

"Ah, here you are!" she heard him say as he approached. "I'm a little dizzy, peasant. I feel like I'm losing it."

When he finally appeared before her, Gioia found out with horror that the boy was covered with blood and that his belly had apparently been ripped open, some of his guts spilling out of it. Unable to even scream, she fled, now fully regretting her stupid idea about celebrating Halloween.

Lost in her misery, she ran straight into something hard and recoiled when she discovered she had collided with a… _torso_? Petrified, she slowly looked around her and realized parts of what seemed to be _real_ corpses had been hanged from the ceiling in a macabre setting. Judging she had seen enough, Gioia ran for her life, not daring to look around her anymore.

At last, a light appeared a few meters away and she let out a relieved sob, sprinting toward the end of her ordeal. Hastily opening the curtains, she finally got out of the corridor of horrors and fell on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Wrongly believing she was now safe, she started when a door opened on her right and a half-naked Levi appeared.

"HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Horrified by the sudden apparition, Gioia once again sprinted away, her shriek echoing after her. Levi watched her disappear around a corner, not sure about what was going on.

"Can't we even take a shower peacefully now?" he grunted, arranging the towel around his waist.

* * *

Xanxus was taking a nap in front of the fireplace when he heard a high-pitched scream resonating in the mansion. He only had time to sit straight on the couch when the door banged open and a tiny figure dashed through the room then jumped on him.

"What the…?"

Caught by surprise, he hadn't managed to stop Gioia and she was now half sitting on his shoulders and with her arms around his head. The Varia boss tried to break away from her grip but the terrified little girl held to him tightly, gibbering about corpses and regrets.

"Stop it, mini-scum! What the fuck is going on?"

The door burst open again and a bewildered Squalo entered, followed by a worried Lussuria and a satisfied Bel.

"Gio, are you okay?" Squalo shouted, extending his arms to take his sister away from his boss.

When she saw him, Gioia shrieked and fretfully kicked him away.

"Boss, don't let them take me!" she cried. "Please don't let them!"

"Oh my" Lussuria sighed as Squalo backed away, taken aback. "I think we went a bit too far…"

"_You_ went too far!" roared Squalo, pointing a blaming finger at Lussuria and Bel. "Using _real_ corpses?! What the fuck is wrong with you, stupid peacock?! And Bel? How the hell did you manage to look gutted?"

"Mu, I gave him a hand" Mammon appeared out of thin air, peering curiously at Gioia who was still clinging to Xanxus' top of his head.

"Are you telling me" growled Xanxus who was miraculously patient enough not to destroy Gioia on the spot "that _you_'re the ones who managed to scare this kid out of her wits?"

They all gulped as they noticed the malevolent spark in the crimson eyes. Before any of them could react, an angry red aura seemed to form around Xanxus who took out his guns and shot at each of his officers. A frenetic commotion followed the shots. The Varia officers darted away from the room, all of them holding one of their limbs that their boss had effectively hit. Shouting apologies, they disappeared in a minute, leaving the Varia boss and the girl.

With a sigh, Xanxus dropped his guns and poked Gioia's arm around his forehead.

"If you could let go of me now, brat…"

Sniffing, the little girl slowly loosened her grip and climbed down from his shoulders to nestle on his lap. She seemed to have recovered from the shock but was still slightly shivering. Thanks to the influence of wine and the satisfaction of shooting his officers, Xanxus exceptionally allowed her to stay on his lap and he looked down at her, the hint of a mocking smile on his lips.

"You kind of deserved that, mini scum."

"I know" she said in a weak voice. "I'm the one who wanted something special for Halloween."

"Well, you got something I bet you'll never forget" Xanxus smirked as she pouted.

**Note:**

**_Happy Halloween, guys! :D_**

_And thanks to LaughterGirl for the suggestion of a Halloween chapter! ^^ All of you, take care and see you soon!_


End file.
